By Olivia Turner | Arts & Life Editor
Fountain Mall will be abuzz with dancing, games and good food on Friday night for Fiesta, an annual event put on by the Hispanic Student Association (HSA) and Baylor Activities Council (BAC). The celebration will run from 6-9 p.m and welcomes attendees from all cultural backgrounds.
Fort Worth senior Daniela Lopez, The president of HSA, said HSA has been putting on Fiesta for about 40 years, based on a recent deep dive she did researching the event’s history based off Baylor archives.
“It’s going to look — hopefully — bigger and better than any other year,” Lopez said. “We went ahead and increased all of our entertainment. We’ve increased the number of food vendors. We’ve gone bigger with the number of family-friendly events.”
Specifically, Lopez said the event will feature activities such as Mexican bingo, also known as lotería; “cantarito” — small, clay pot — painting, bounce houses, a latin dance lesson and more.
Dallas junior Berkley Ponce, treasurer and service chair of HSA, said in addition to the entertainment activities, there will be educational stations were attendees can learn about different hispanic countries.
“It’s a good way to enjoy Hispanic and Latinx culture while also learning about it and becoming more familiar with something that’s so prevalent on Baylor’s campus and in Texas in general,” Ponce said.
The sharing and celebrating of Latin cultures is so significant at Baylor because Latinx people now make up the largest share of Texas’ population, according to Ponce.
Many of the activities Fiesta features are recycled over the years, Ponce said. Her favorite part of last year’s celebration was watching attendees play lotería for the first time.
“The kids were really funny to work with,” Ponce said. “It was just a fun experience getting to introduce something that I play all the time with my family to people that have never heard of it before.”
Ponce said the thing she is most excited for this year is the DJ the event will be hosting, who goes by SCUFFED.
Sison Tacos, Churros’ Time Waco and Helados La Azteca — HSA’s most consistent sponsor — are the local food vendors that will be present at the event, according to Lopez. Teresitas Birrias, a tacos, quesabirria and tortas vendor HSA recently established a relationship with, will be the newest and final addition to the food selection at Fiesta.
“We’re paying for the first 25 purchases of food for each vendor so if you’re early enough you can actually get a free food item,” Lopez said.
In addition to hispanic students, staff, faculty and Wacoans from all cultural backgrounds are welcome to attend Fiesta, according to Lopez.
“This year we really just wanted to go a little bolder, share our presence in this big public place and make a safe space for all these Hispanic people who may not have found their people on campus yet” Lopez said.
Fiesta is just one part of all that HSA has to offer, Lopez said. It is never too late to join, she said.
For those who are looking for a place to belong, she encourages them to consider joining the association, Ponce said.
“I transferred here in my sophomore year from out of state, and I didn’t really find my community at my old college,” Ponce said. “So when I came here, I went to Latin next night and discovered HSA through one of our old officers. The more that I attended, the more that I felt at home with everyone there. I’ve made some of my best friends at Baylor and who I know I’ll remain friends with after Baylor through HSA.”
